Strangolapreti trentini are Trentino's spinach-and-bread dumplings—soft, oval gnocchi made from a mixture of stale bread, spinach (or wild nettles), egg, milk, and flour, poached until tender and served with melted butter and grated Trentingrana (the local Grana Padano-style cheese), creating a dish of gentle, herbaceous comfort that is one of the most beloved primi of the Dolomites. The name ('priest stranglers') is shared with various Italian pasta shapes but in Trentino refers specifically to these bread-and-spinach dumplings—legend holds that a gluttonous priest ate them so eagerly he choked. The base is stale bread cubes (as with canederli, stale bread is the staff of Trentino's kitchen), softened with warm milk, combined with cooked, squeezed, and finely chopped spinach (or nettle tops, or chard), bound with egg and enough flour to hold together. The mixture is shaped into oval quenelle-like dumplings using two spoons or floured hands, poached in gently simmering salted water until they float, then drained and dressed simply: melted butter (cooked to a light brown noisette for the best versions), grated Trentingrana or Grana Padano, and sometimes a few crispy sage leaves fried in the butter. The dumplings should be soft, light, and just barely holding their shape—they should melt on the tongue rather than bouncing. The spinach should be prominent in both colour and flavour, producing a dumpling that is vividly green-speckled throughout.
Stale bread, spinach (or nettles), egg, milk, flour. Shape into oval dumplings. Poach until they float. Dress with brown butter, sage, grated Grana. Soft and delicate—should barely hold together. The spinach must be thoroughly squeezed of water before mixing.
Wild nettles (picked with gloves in spring) make the best strangolapreti—more flavourful than spinach. The bread cubes should be small (1cm) and quite dry. Let the mixture rest 20 minutes before shaping. Cook brown butter until it smells nutty and has amber-coloured sediment—that's beurre noisette. A test dumpling helps you check the seasoning and binding before committing to the whole batch.
Using too much flour (makes them heavy—use just enough to bind). Wet spinach (must be squeezed bone-dry or the mixture is too wet). Using fresh bread (must be stale). Boiling too vigorously (they break apart—use a gentle simmer). Skipping the brown butter (it's the finishing touch that elevates them).
Touring Club Italiano, Trentino-Alto Adige in Cucina; Academia Barilla, Regional Italian Cooking